Treasury Board Secretariat update on review of contracts with McKinsey & Company

March 24, 2023 – Ottawa, Ontario – Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

The Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) today issued the following Statement:

“Canadians expect and deserve value for contracts signed by the government on their behalf. As such, at the Prime Minister’s request, the President of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Public Services and Procurement are undertaking a review of contracts awarded to McKinsey & Company.

"These internal reviews will compliment separate work that the Office of the Auditor General and the Procurement Ombudsmen are undertaking, as well as an ongoing study at the Standing Committee on Government Estimates and Operations.

TBS asked departments to identify and conduct an internal audit of their contracts with McKinsey to verify if the integrity of the procurement process was maintained and complied with Treasury Board policy and departmental internal control frameworks.

“Based on TBS’ preliminary observations of audit results from departments, the audits reveal no evidence of political interference, and broad compliance with values and ethics commitments. However, there are indications that certain administrative requirements and procedures were not consistently followed. Departments have developed management action plans to address their respective audit recommendations.

“These are preliminary observations, and a more detailed review will be conducted to fully assess if any changes or improvements might be required to federal procurement policies or practices.

“To that end, TBS will consider the audit report findings and other relevant information, including proceedings of the parliamentary committee on Government Operations and Estimates, to understand if there are any policy areas or procurement practices that may need to be strengthened. This analysis will also assess if there is a need for enhanced guidance and training.

“A final report will be produced by June 30,2023.”